Khamsone Sirimanivong
"I was born in 1974, one year after the US bombings stopped. Although the air raids ceased, the devastation continued and greatly impacted my family. I remember quite a bit of our journey to escape these war legacies in Savannakhet Province, as it took us six years to emigrate to the states, finally arriving in 1981. My father never talked about his former life in Laos, the secret bombings or how we lost our home and sadly he never would - he became gravely ill and passed away when I was a teenager. His passing raised so many questions and inspired me to research our family history and that is how I came upon the American Secret War. Years later, I discovered the mission of Legacies of War and I knew I had found my purpose. I feel deeply connected to my father, my history and my cultural origins through this opportunity to serve on the Board and help further the great humanitarian work of war legacies for the people of Laos.”
My Story
Khamsone Sirimanivong is a Lao-American currently serving as Vice Chair of Legacies of War, where she hopes her connection and efforts in the arts community will create awareness, unity and support to further the mission of addressing war legacies in Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. Currently she is pursuing a Fulbright project connecting her appreciation of cultural arts, preservation and textiles, in communities in Laos impacted by conflict and UXO. She is often in Europe, SE Asia, or NYC seeking creative connections to both her humanitarian and research projects. Prior she was president of Arizona Costume Institute at Phoenix Art Museum, which strives to preserve cultural history through art and design. She also serves on the board of Arizona Costume Institute, Asian Corporate and Entrepreneur Leaders and the Programming Committee at Phoenix Committee on Foreign Relations. She resides in Phoenix, Arizona, where her family emigrated almost 50 year ago, after the American Secret War, which left her birthplace in Laos as the most heavily bombed country in history.
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